As the 7-footer from Kentucky prepares for the NBA draft, his skill on defense and his overwhelming athleticism may make him a top-five pick. The level of his devotion to basketball and his skills on offense appear to be the only questions. Kentucky coach John Calipari said, “A team that really needs defense now to get them to another level, those are the teams that are going to say, ‘We’re taking him and then we’re going to mold him offensively and then we’re going to have an All-Star.’” Cauley-Stein insists he’ll be ready for the NBA grind. “I don’t see myself not playing basketball,” he said. “I don’t see myself not around basketball. There’s no part of me that doesn’t like basketball. I love it.”

Babatunde Aiyegbusi

The tackle, 27, is getting a shot at the NFL with Minnesota despite limited experience in leagues in Germany and his native Poland. At 6-foot-9 and 350 pounds, it’s a wonder how Aiyegbusi, whose father was Nigerian, has ever been hidden. “In Europe, my physique was good enough for beating everyone,” he said. “...Here, you guys are big and strong. And they’ve got good technique. If he’s not stronger than you, he’s probably got better technique and knows what you will do before you do it.” Vikings offensive line coach Jeff Davidson says Aiyegbusi “absorbs all the information. Completely coachable. We are starting from ground zero, though, so I know as a coach I have to be patient.”